Could You Succeed as a Private Detective?

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: There’s no question that writing a wonderful novel requires a lot of sitting down at your desk and just writing the darn thing. But there’s a lot more, especially when an author is devoted to the story.

I’m so enchanted by Susan Breen’s novel. I wouldn’t have predicted that I’d be drawn to something so…sweetly thoughtfully sensitive.  But Maggie Dove is a treasure.  And I am so delighted to hear the bravery and risk-taking that went into it!

And the self-awareness.

Today, Susan Breen shares her adventures! Could you be the main character in your own book? Susan decided to find out first hand. And see below for a wonderful giveaway!

AN AUTHOR’S EDUCATION

               By Susan Breen

When I finished writing my first mystery, Maggie Dove, I discovered, to my surprise, that I had ended the book with Maggie opening a detective agency. This seemed like a fabulous idea until I started writing the second book and realized I had no idea what being a private detective entailed, beyond having watched a significant number of Thin Man movies some time ago. It was a conundrum, especially because the book deadline was in six months.

I did the obvious thing. I googled private detective and came up with a lot of useful information, but what I really wanted to know was what it would be like for a normal person (using the word normal in the broadest sense of the word) to open a detective agency. So, I decided to become a detective myself, which it turns out you can do on line.

Every month or so, a brown-wrapped package shows up in my mailbox with readings on such topics as “Becoming a Process Server, “Conducting Marital Investigations,” and my favorite: “What are Gut Feelings?” Every session ends with a test. (I’m happy to report I’ve aced each test!) 

Best of all, each session includes a number of detective exercises. These included such things as how to go through your neighbor’s trash (which I refrained from doing) and how to conduct surveillance, which I did. Along the way, I’ve learned a number of intriguing things, about myself and about detectives.

1    

       

 First, and to my surprise, I discovered I am fabulous at surveillance. I spent an afternoon following various people around Times Square (because I work near there) and I can affirm that nobody noticed a thing. This is the great advantage of being a short middle-aged woman. Quite honestly, I think I could hurl myself at someone and they wouldn’t notice. 

           Less surprising, I discovered I am terrible at car surveillance. Somehow, turning on an ignition makes things more serious. The exercise was to follow someone in a car and take pictures, “when convenient.” I can tell you that it is never convenient to drive and take pictures. By the time I entered the password to turn on my phone, the “suspect” was long gone. However, I did put that experience to good use in Maggie Dove’s Detective Agency.

3        Maybe the most surprising thing I’ve learned is how much information is public. You would not believe what you can learn about yourself, or your relatives, or your boss. Just starting with the stuff that’s easy to find, and free, there are real estate records, title records, criminal records, divorce records. Things that you would cringe to have other people know are right there, and I’m leaving out the special PI data banks, that you have to pay for but give you access to even more.

4        Finally, I was surprised to discover how many opportunities there are for women in this field. I thought there would be a lot more physical intimidation involved (which is not an area in which I excel.) But most of being a private detective is about gathering information—interviewing people, phoning them, following them. In fact, the primary requirements seem to be intelligence, patience and creativity.

Perhaps my main take-away from all of this is how much I enjoy being a private detective. Should things go south with Maggie Dove, you may find me stalking you. But you won’t notice. So don’t worry.

Have you ever had to learn something weird in order to be able to do your job?

HANK:  Yes. Every day. And happily so.  How about you, Reds? And leave a comment to be entered for a copy of  MAGGIE DOVE'S DETECTIVE AGENCY! But Susan, I have to say, your personal story is hilarious. An on-line detective? Who'd have thought?

But Reds and readers, what’s the weirdest thing you’ve ever tried?  (Debs, peanut butter and mayonnaise doesn’t count…)

Susan Breen is the author of the Maggie Dove mystery series, published by the Alibi digital imprint of Penguin Random House. Her short stories have been published by a number of magazines, among them Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, American Literary Review and Best American Non-Required Reading. An upcoming Maggie Dove mystery story will be published by Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine. Susan teaches creative writing at Gotham Writers in Manhattan. She lives in a small village in the Hudson Valley with her husband, two dogs (cockapoos) and a cat. Her three grown children are flourishing elsewhere.

To See? Or not to See?

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN:  Coming up: more reservations (from Matt Coyle)! And another giveaway.  

But first: AND THE WINNERS (from yesterday) are:

Of the Jungle Red Writers book of choice, (you name it, you get it, including (but no pressure) an ARC of Hank’s upcoming WHAT YOU SEE but really, any JRW book) is Kate  (who posted at 10:07)

And because Lucy is SO touched by all your support, she’s giving a copy of FATAL RESERVATIONS to:   Bonnie K.    (But, deep in our hearts, we hope you will all buy it. And we hope that this is Bonnie K’s second copy. )

Just send your addresses to me via my website.

SO now, for today, more reservations. Of a different kind. The talented Matt Coyle has reservations about—how his character looks.

To See or Not to See? That is Matt’s question. 

What do you think? And then tell us at the end to win Matt’s 

first book, YESTERDAY’S ECHO.

MATT COYLE: First, I want to thank Hank Phillippi Ryan for inviting me to post on Jungle Red Writers. It’s an honor. Hank has been like a Fairy Godsister in my fledgling writing career, sprinkling a little fairy dust at important times along the way.

HANK: Aw. You’re doing pretty fine, bub. Anthony Award and all.

MATT: Thanks! But I’ve been writing Rick Cahill for thirteen years. The fact that this has only produced two published novels and an, as of yet, unfinished third book could be discouraging. However, if you take into account how many times I rewrote the first book, YESTERDAY’S ECHO, it really comes in at around six or seven books. The point is I know Rick very well. By book three, he’s thirty-six years old.

He owns a home with a sliver of an ocean view.

He’s a private detective and drives a black 2006 Mustang GT.

 He’s a widow and currently single. His sidekick is his six year-old black Labrador, Midnight.

I write in first person so I’m in Rick’s head all the time. I know what he’s thinking when he doesn’t speak and I know the dreams he has but never tells anyone about. I know when he makes a tragic decision well before the tragedy happens. I know the truth about him even when he tries to fool himself.

I just don’t know what he looks like.

Well, I know in general terms. He’s around six feet tall and physically fit, but not a gym rat. Sturdy over thin. He’s of Irish descent and probably somewhat fair-skinned. 

Hair color? Not blond, black or red, so that leaves some shade of brown. Eyes? I don’t know.

Facial looks, not a clue. I’ve never seen his face. I almost saw it once in YESTERDAY’S ECHO. After surviving a home invasion, battered and beaten, Rick takes stock:

I got out of the shower and looked at myself in the mirror. Steam blotted out my reflection.

That’s as close as I’ve gotten and that’s fine with me. I don’t have to know what Rick looks like. I just have to know who he is.

I’m from the school of thought that thinks it’s best to sometimes let the reader fill in empty space with their own imagination. Not that I want to give them a complete blank canvas. Here’s a description from my second book, NIGHT TREMORS, that gives a bit of both:

Her voice sounded like pocket change rattling around in a clothes dryer. Loud. Jarring. Unexpected. She couldn’t have been taller than five feet or weighed more than ninety pounds. Brown eyes the size of coasters took up most of her face. Lips took up the rest. Auburn hair in a bob cut. Late thirties, early forties, but wearing it easy. Everything fit together. Not pretty, but attractive.

I let the readers fill in the blank spaces on Rick Cahill. He lives inside my brain 24/7 and I see his thoughts before they appear in his own head. But when it comes to his face, the steam is still covering the mirror.

A question for readers: Do you want a character’s physical characteristics all spelled out so you can see things exactly as the writer wants you to or do you like to fill in some of the empty space yourself?

For writers: How much physical detail do you give in describing your protagonist? How important is it to you to know exactly what he or she looks like?

HANK: Yeah, what do you think?  I struggle with that every day! I just wrote a new character, TV documentary producer Fiola (not Fiona!) Morello. What does she look like? I’m still working that out. What do YOU think she looks like? Or should I follow Matt’s lead? 

*******************

About NIGHT TREMORS:

Rick Cahill risks losing his home, his freedom, and even his life when he battles corrupt police, the criminal justice system, a friend turned enemy, a vicious biker gang, and a psychopathic murder as he tries to free an innocent man from prison.

Matt Coyle knew he wanted to be a crime writer as a youngster when his father gave him THE SIMPLE ART OF MURDER by Raymond Chandler. It only took him forty years to achieve his goal. His first novel, YESTERDAY’S ECHO, won the Anthony Award for Best First Novel, the San Diego Book Award for Best Mystery, and the Ben Franklin Award for Best New Voice in Fiction. His second novel, NIGHT TREMORS, came out in June.